President Lee Jae-myung expressed optimism on July 25 regarding the European Union's decision to exempt South Korea from sanctions related to the import of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Russia's Sakhalin-2 project. He stated, "In a situation where energy supply uncertainty is increasing, I expect this will greatly help the daily lives of our citizens and our economy."
While on a tour of the United States and South America, President Lee shared the news on X (formerly Twitter), saying, "I was pleased to hear that our companies have been recognized as exceptions to the EU's sanctions on Russian LNG."
He added, "During my meeting with EU leaders in June, I explained the need for exceptional allowances for our energy security and urged their active interest in this matter."
President Lee promised to continue to do his utmost to protect the lives of citizens and national interests through thorough responses.
The EU adopted its 21st package of sanctions against Russia on July 23, which includes an exemption allowing South Korea to import LNG produced from the Sakhalin-2 project until March 2028.
The South Korean government explained that this development is a result of significant progress made during the Korea-EU summit held in Brussels on June 10, where the issue of importing Russian LNG was a key economic and trade concern.
The government has been requesting the EU to apply the exemption to ensure that the Korea Gas Corporation can import 1.5 million tons of LNG annually from the Sakhalin-2 project under a long-term contract from April 2008 to March 2028, preventing any disruptions in LNG supply.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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